Behind the Limelight
by Goldie-with-a-pen
Summary: Levi, a prince, is conflicted with the struggles and expectations of being one. He only wishes he could be normal, and go to a normal school. Can he convince the strict king to allow such a thing?
1. I long for normality

**[AN] So, I decided I'd update this and add to it. So this is the first chapter, and the second one might be coming soon. Please leave a review of what you think, and I'd love it if you'd follow and favorite. Thank you! :)**

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Levi sighed as he stared out the window, looking down at the fuzzy trees below, being blurred out by the window screen stuck to the glass with fresh rain. His hand ghosted along the cool glass.

He wished so badly, so badly just to go outside in the rain. Enjoy a little fun, a little foolishness. Even if it meant getting his clothes wet, he'd get to see a rainbow.

He leaned his head forward and plopped his chin in his palm. His eyes lazily scraped across the barely fathomable images that blurred by. He could catch sight of trees, cars, and a few very distant people.

He was aware, he's always been, of the fact that he is not allowed outside unless it is a special event, for the public would immediately swarm him. They've done so since he was a child. He wouldn't be able to live normally, even if he were to do all but change his name. The public would still stalk him, still pry him of his personal information, still follow his every move, still find everything he does of newsworthy importance.

He let out another sigh as his eyelids drooped closed. He didn't want to have to deal with this. This life. This burden of being known worldwide, and having absolutely zero personal life, whether he wants it or not. Whether his greedy uncle wants it or not. They have it now.

He stood, the screech of the chair he pushed back with his legs echoing through the quiet room. This house was always quiet. Almost every room was so big it held an echo, almost every room didn't have enough furniture to actually look used, they had too many bed and bathrooms for the number of people living there, and they had too much room in the house overall. So much so that one could go an entire day without seeing another patron of the house.

He wished with everything he had in him that he could have a normal live, go to a normal school, eat dinner with his family (Though it is a small one), just live like a human being without mounting stress and pressure on their young shoulders.

He pushed the chair back into its proper place at the desk. The lighting in the room was dim, but he could see well enough. He turned and walked toward the large oak door that was his bedroom door. It swung open with a slight creak, a noise that still annoys Levi.

He walked down a long hall with a tall ceiling, the oversized heel of his dress shoes clicking on the tile floor with every stride.

The, once again, large doors of the dining hall were pushed open much smoother than Levi's bedroom door, only for him to be greeted by a long, empty table.

He grimaced as he walked toward the obnoxiously long table. He never sees his uncle at dinner or almost any time at all. And when he is eating dinner with him, it's like he's not even there. This table is literally so long that two people could eat at it and not even notice the other is there. But Levi feels that he did this on purpose. That he doesn't even want to be near him. That he frequents working late in his bedroom or in the office, because he'd rather avoid him.

The thought made his stomach churn, almost making him lose whatever appetite he had. He sighed as his body fell into a velvet upholstered chair. He didn't even have to make his own food.

* * *

Levi's hands ran through his hair as he stared out his window, once again sitting in the top room of the large mansion like a bird at its perch. Except, he was a bird with clipped wings. All freedom was completely dissolved in his life. He couldn't even leave his house. This house couldn't even be considered that. It was a castle. It especially helps that it was built in the victorian era, only making it look more like it houses royalty.

These houses are rare upon the modern times, so it's no wonder this house gets so much attention as it is, with many people observing and photographing it from afar, not even realizing the Ackerman's lived there.

He sighed as his thoughts roamed back to that disdained subject. He is royalty. Which means he is expected to act like. But he doesn't want to have to. He doesn't want to live up to the standards of the king, who's expectations are higher than the ceilings.

He scoffed at that while standing from the window seat. He pulled open the window with a loud creak, cringing at the disgruntling noise. He plopped back down onto the upholstered bench set directly in front of the window and grabbed a round red pillow previously sitting behind him and plopped it into his lap.

He inhaled a relaxing breath of fresh air, his tense muscles loosening just slight. He was tense because he wanted to speak with the king, currently locked away in his study, about their current situation. Specifically his schooling. He has always longed for a regular life in a regular school. However, he's always had the opposite. He has always been in a private school and been treated completely different from a regular child for the entirety of his life.

His chin fell into his palm as he stared out at the damp landscape, still wet from the earlier rain. The dew covered trees glimmered in the low light of the moon as the night drew near, the sun almost completely hidden amidst the horizon.

His eyes lazily panned across the landscape as his mind reeled with how to address the question on his mind, as he knew the king does not fair well to agreeing or losing an argument. After all, Levi must treat him with respect, and honor. He never talks back to him, or poses an argument, so, he believed the king would not take well to this.

He abruptly stood and walked over to his king-size bed sitting in the centre of the room. He plopped himself down onto it and let out a tired sigh. His mind was still awake but he at least had to _try_ to get some sleep. He let out another heavy, tired sigh as he stood again.

He quickly pulled off all his clothes and neatly folded them in stacks on his dresser to be worn or washed at another time. He slipped into some silk pajama's and pulled back the duvet to his bed. He laid under the heavy, warm covers and pulled them up to his chin.

* * *

Levi's eyes slowly opened. He hadn't slept much but he'd estimate that he got about four hours. He groaned as he threw the covers off him, rubbing his temples in frustration and the lack of sleep. He was still tired but stirred in the bed upon a strange sound.

"Ugh, what is that?" he asked irritably as he shuffled around in the bed, his hand dropping back to his side. His eyes widened in shock as he saw a small feathered creature perched on his window sill. His _open_ window sill. He forgot to close it the night before.

He inwardly scolded himself for his stupidity and forgetfulness as he climbed out of bed, armed with the duvet that he held up in front of his chest. He ran up to the small white bird, padding lightly across the plush carpeted floor.

He shouted slightly and tried to shoo the bird away and out the window. "Yah! Yah! Get outta here, shoo!" He tried to usher the bird out the window manually, by using the duvet, but the bird simply jumped up and flew into the room, disgruntled by his shouting and general presence.

"You're a terrible house guest!" he shouted at the unwanted creature as it flew in circles near the ceiling of his bedroom. He growled lowly and dropped the duvet to his floor. He ended up running around in circles, jumping periodically, and waving his arms wildly above his head, trying to scare the bird out. He would add sporadic shouts, but that didn't seem to help any more than the jumping and flailing.

Finally, he stopped. He was completely out of breath and panting. His hands dropped to his knees as he struggled to regain his breath and energy. The bird decided that _now_ was a good time to leave, and headed toward the window. It flew out quickly and left Levi's view.

He groaned loudly as he fell to the ground in a sitting position, sitting on his calves. "Stupid bird," he muttered as he stood and walked to the window. He leaned out it placing his hands on the window sill and lifted his left knee, putting it on the small window bench.

"And stay out!" he yelled, fully aware that the bird couldn't hear nor understand him. He growled slightly as he leaned back into the building, grabbing the top rail of the window. He was about to slam it closed in a violent manner, but something, or rather, someone, caught his attention.

He paused in his movements to stare out the window down at the still damp road. A young girl with strawberry blonde shoulder length hair walked next to a taller young man with curly blond jaw length hair. The man was taller than the girl, but he could tell that she was a short girl with a petite frame. They both had backpacks slung over their shoulders. The man appeared to be talking to her about something or other.

Levi realized they must be going to the high school nearby. He could see the girl laugh at something the guy said. She walked close to him as their faces were no longer in view. Levi grimaced as he slammed the window shut.

He turned around and walked over to his wardrobe against the wall directly across from his bed. He opened the doors and pulled out a nice shirt, pants, and an overcoat. He tossed them onto the bed and quickly pulled off his silk pajamas, neatly folding them away, and then getting dressed in his nice clothes he set out on the bed.

His mind was made up.


	2. A man of his word

**[AN] Sorry that this one's shorter, but it will lead to much more. Please leave a review, and I'd love it if you were to follow and favorite it. Thank you for reading! :)**

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Levi strode quickly down the long hallway, his legs carrying him faster than the length of them might let on. He finally reached the end and knocked on the huge oak doors of the king's study.

"Enter," echoed out from the room, signaling Levi to push open the doors. Light spilled into the dark room, where his uncle sat at a desk on the far side of the room, hunched over some paperwork.

"Lord Kenny-"

"State your reasoning for interrupting me," the king interrupts, clearly quite annoyed with this sudden intrusion.

Levi swallows around a lump in his throat, nervousness evident when he speaks. "Lord, I had a proposal." His voice sounded strangled and broken as he forced out coherent words through the fear of the king.

The daunting man stood from the chair and stalked over to Levi. He stood over him as he glared, forcing him to strangle out more speech. "I-I, want to... Go to a public school..." He whispered the last sentence, worried that if he spoke too loud his voice would crack.

"What?" the king growled in a low tone. "I-I want to go to public school!" Levi peeped, his worries proven true as his voice wavered throughout his sentence. Kenny's eyebrows lowered further as he glared dangerously at Levi.

Levi adjusted and loosened his cravat around his neck, as he felt that it constricted his breathing. "P-please, my lord. I wish to-"

"Do you not respect the privileges you hold?"

Levi shook his head diligently. "N-no, my lord. I just wish to..."

"To what?" the angered king shouted.

" **I WISH TO HAVE A NORMAL LIFE!** " he shouted, coming out far louder and distressed than he would've rathered. Kenny's voice got dangerously low as he growled; "Do you realize how dangerous that would be if someone recognized you?"

"B-but, my lord, I-I could disguise my identity and-"

"That is **TOO** dangerous, someone could recognize you."

"B-but-"

" **NO. THAT IS ENOUGH.** "

Levi flinched at his uncle's yelling, he knew this would happen. But, he wasn't going to be fully complacent. He was going to fight for something for once in his life. And if he failed, well, he doesn't know what will happen. He knows it won't be good, but he'll try anyway.

"No. That is not enough," Levi shouted.

Kenny's eyes widened in shock, never has his nephew raised his voice at him. " **WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY!?** "

" **I SAID NO!** "

Kenny's eyes turned dangerously enraged as he drilled holes into Levi's skull with his intense stare, Levi matching completely in intensity.

Kenny suddenly straightened his posture and managed to wipe the look of anger off his face as he spoke in a condescendingly calm tone. "Well? How do you plan on keeping your identity secret? If you would come here and speak to me like this, you must have a plan."

"I do," Levi spoke softly. Kenny arched an inquiring eyebrow, signaling for the younger man to continue. "I thought... That I could use a pseudonym... So as people wouldn't recognize my name... And..."

"Your appearance?" Kenny griped, annoying Levi.

" _And_... I thought... That I cold die my hair... And use contacts to change my eye color," Levi finished.

Kenny grimaced but said; "Fine. But, I will not allow you to stay here. You will live somewhere else on your own. Find an apartment and I shall pay for it."

Levi nodded along with everything the king spoke of, as he added; "As long as you can promise me, that you will _**never**_ disclose your true name.

 _"I promise."_


	3. Start to a new life

**Ooh, imagining blond Levi with green eyes is interesting... I like that. Also, a lot of these scenes are an homage to my OC Bara Tetsu. If you want to learn more about her, you can read Iron Roses. Please enjoy, and leave a review! :D**

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Levi smiled as he held a box of blond hair dye and green eye contacts in his arms. His, _servant_ , god did he hate that word, had picked them up for him. He nodded at the taller brunette of whom swiftly left afterward.

Still with that smile from before, Levi left to his bedroom and entered the ensuite. Upon entering the bathroom he diligently tore open the box of hair dye. He set the bottle on the vanity and discarded of the box in the nearby trash bin. He then moved for the eye contacts, opening those and setting the canister next to the bottle of hair dye, also throwing the box into the same trash bin.

He unscrewed the lid to the contact holders. Once doing so, he examined them. They looked strange, not at all like regular contacts. Well... Like regular contacts... Just with color in them. He gently dabbed his finger onto the contact, and it stuck to the pad of his finger. He brushed his hair out of his face with his left hand, as his right brought the contact toward his eye.

He lined up the contact, and gently placed it on his eye. He blinked away the intrusion in his eyes and grabbed the eyedrops that his servant also picked up. He leaned his head back and dropped a few eyedrops in his eyes. He blinked them in and then completed the same cycle with the other eye.

Once both contacts were in and he applied the eyedrops, he paused a moment and stared at himself in the mirror. It was strange, seeing himself with a different eye color. It was like looking into the eyes of a completely different person.

He shook that away and continued his preparations. He grabbed the box of hair dye and examined it. He looked over the instructions, furrowing his brows in thought. "How am I going to do this myself?" he murmured.

He quickly strode out of the bathroom, through the bedroom, and toward the banister at the edge of the balcony, looming over the living area. "Tetsu!" he called.

A brunette at the bottom of the stairs dusting a bookshelf turned around, their curly chin length hair bouncing around their head. They walked up the staircase quickly and stopped in front of Levi.

"Sa," she stated, stiffly bowing.

Levi lifted his hands, still holding the box of hair dye in his right, saying; "Calm down, I just want you to help me with this." He showed her the box and gestured toward it, her muscles relaxing just a bit. She nodded and followed him back into the ensuite of his bedroom.

Levi handed her the bottle and moved a nearby stool next to the sink. He first removed his cravat from around his neck and place it on the vanity, then he pulled off his over coat and also placed that on the vanity. He pulled up the long sleeves of his white button down shirt.

"Here," Levi said, moving another stool to sit by the other in front of the sink. "Box said to shampoo first," he announced as he grabbed the shampoo and conditioner from the shower. "Sit here," he called.

"Oh-!" Tetsu peeped, jumping into place and sitting on the stool by the sink. Levi was already seated and waiting. "Could you do this for me?" Levi asked, showing her the bottle of shampoo. Tetsu nodded, saying, "Hai."

Levi smiled slightly as she took the bottle. He positioned himself so that his back was against the vanity and leaned his head back, dipping it under the faucet. He lifted his hand, awkwardly fiddling for the knobs to turn on the water, and failing miserably at it. Tetsu took the hint that he was struggling and turned on the water for him.

He winced in surprise as the cold water poured down his scalp. "Oh! Sorry!" Tetsu murmured as she added hot water to the cold. Once the water heated up Levi let out a contented sigh through his nose as he closed his eyes. Tetsu turned off the water and opened the cap of the shampoo, pouring some on her hand.

She slowly massaged it into Levi's scalp, a very relaxing ministration. Levi sighed in content again. He opened his eyes and looked up at the brunette working diligently on cleaning his hair. "Hey, so, I never actually got your name," he stated calmly, trying to make idle chit-chat. "My name is Tetsu, Sa." Levi sighed slightly as he looked up into her auburn eyes. "No, but... Your _first_ name." She paused for a moment. "Oh..." she whispered, returning to massaging Levi's scalp. "Bara."

Levi sighed again. "Good, okay. Thank you, Bara." She nodded. "Of course, Sa." She turned on the water again and rinsed the shampoo from his hair. "Would you like me to do this too, Sa?" Bara asked, showing him the bottle of conditioner. He nodded. "Yes, please."

The conditioning went by quickly, and Levi rinsed his head off. He lifted his head, hair still dripping wet. "Bara, hand me a towel please." She nodded and grabbed a plush, white towel. She handed it to him and he nodded in thanks as he grabbed it. He tossed it onto his head and rubbed his hair dry. After that, he dropped the towel to his shoulders, murmuring; "I need to give my hair time to dry before we put in the dye... It said your hair has to be _completely_ dry." He stressed 'completely' to tell her they'd need to wait a while. Bara nodded.

They both fell speechless for a moment, Bara not wanting to break the silence, and Levi not feeling the need to. Levi sighed loosely through his nose, feeling boredom pry at his mind. He looked down at his hands in his lap as he fiddled with the hem of his shirt. Being bored sucks. He looked up to his wet hair, bangs hanging in his face. He attempted to blow them away, but they would just flutter up, only to fall back into the same place. He furrowed his brows and grimaced. He'd need a haircut soon, too.

"Ugh," he groaned, knowing it was always almost impossible to keep his hair out of his face when it was wet. He brushed some of his bangs aside with his hand, though they continued to fall back where they were. He scraped his fingers across his hairline, dragging his bangs back and pushing them behind his ears. He was finally satisfied with that, as they stayed away from his line of sight. Until, they began to slowly unravel from behind his ears, and slowly floated back into his vision.

He groaned louder in defeat. He looked down at the watch on his wrist, seeing it had only been seven minutes. "So," he started, awkwardly trying to create idle chit-chat. "How are you?" he asked, sounding more unsure than questioning. Bara hummed in confusion. "Fine," She stated curtly. "You?"

Levi looks absentmindedly out the nearby window as he responds; "Better than ever," with a faint smile. Bara hums. "That's good. I assume the conversation you had with the king has something to do with this?" Levi nods. "You'd be right."

A small smile is evident on Bara's lips as she murmurs; " Strange..." Levi cocks his head to the side, an elegant brow arching in question. "What?" he asks with a hint of annoyance in his tone. Bara turns to look out the window. "I only caught fragments of your argument, but I understand where you're coming from. Some people would consider _this_ freedom. I know the king does. But, it is freedom In a way -freedom from the economy, some freedoms from laws, freedom to control the country- but then, this isn't freedom. You have no freedom for what you will become later on in life, you have almost no choice in what you are doing, and what you will do, you have no freedom to make decisions, even trivial ones, _I_ don't have freedom of any of those things either. So, I understand why you made that argument and fought for what you wanted. Because, if no one did that, there would be _no_ freedom for _anyone_."

Levi was left gaping in awe. He did _not_ expect that from her. She turns back to face him and smiles slightly. "What?" she asks, noticing his staring. Levi shakes the look off his face, muttering; "N-nothing." Bara looks down at Levi's wrist and tilts her head to her left. After squinting a while, she tilts her head to her right. She huffs through her nose and points down at Levi's wrist. "What's the time?" He hums and glances at her. "Oh, nine forty-two, it's been about twenty-five minutes."

"Do you think your hair is dry enough yet?" she asks, taking a good look at his hair. He thinks a moment, before nodding. "Yeah, I think so." He grabs the towel from his shoulders and gives his hair another quick dry, leaving it thoroughly poofed. He grumbles in annoyance at the disarray of his hair. "Comb?" Bara asks, handing him a small yellow comb. Levi nods. "Thanks," he mumbles, gently grabbing the comb from her hands. He brushed through his hair a few times until he was satiated with the semi-contained look of it.

"Alright," Bara mutters, picking up the bottle of hair dye still sat on the vanity. "We'll need to use this now... Where are the directions?" she half-asks herself, half-asks Levi. "They're on the back," Levi tells her, pointing to the area in question. Bara hums and turns the bottle around in her hands. "Ah, here it is, thanks." She runs her finger along the directions as she read the text. Once she understood all the directions she gave a silent nod to no one in particular. "Okay, ready?" she asks. Levi nods and adjusts his seating position so that his head leans back in the bowl of the sink.

It doesn't take Bara long to get Levi's hair fully covered in the dye, and when she's done she announces; "Alright, Sa. I'm done. Says here that you need to wait thirty minutes before touching it." Levi nods his affirmation as Bara comes to a stand. She sets the bottle back down on the vanity as she tells him; "I'll be on the bottom floor if you need anything." He nods at that as well. She swiftly leaves the room, not closing the bathroom door, but the bedroom door. The door closes with a soft thunk, and he hears her footsteps for just a few moments later until it sounds as though she's completely gone.

Levi lets out a nervous sigh. All of the thoughts swirling through his head about going to school have gotten him stressed. He shakes off all those thoughts and stands, moving the stools back into place against the wall. He turns and faces the mirror, feeling slightly surprised by his own reflection. It is quite jarring to see yourself... But not yourself... He has to admit, though, he looks good as a blond. It suits him well, and pairs nicely with the green eyes. He just hopes no one will recognize his facial features, though, he doubts anyone will. Even _he_ can barely recognize himself.

He turns around with a quiet sigh as he's faced with a wall adorned with towels. He furrows his brows as he stares at them. _White_ , towels. Every single one of them. "Ugh," he grumbles, annoyed with having to wait thirty minutes just to touch his hair. He takes another long look at himself in the mirror. His eyes look so unnatural. He's sure that there are people with green eyes, but definitely not _that_ intense of a shade. Maybe it was just his opinion because he was so used to seeing himself with dull, blue-gray eyes, instead of bright, vibrant green ones. He turns to look at the towels one more time, furrowing his brows in thought. After just a few moments of thought, he moves toward them.

All the towels land in a pile in front of his bedroom door.


	4. Rivai Akkaman

**[AN] I like this chapter, and what it's leading up to. So far, I like the way I've represented Kenny in Levi's life, and I like having Bara from Iron Roses in this. It adds a level of connection to AU and canon-verse. Anyhow, thank you for reading, please leave a review, follow, and favorite!**

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Levi feels his nerves ebbing away at his calm demeanor as he scrolls down page after page, searching for an apartment near enough to the school to be within walking distance, which for him was around ten miles, and within his uncle's strict price range of one-hundred dollars a month. That was an impossible task. Anything anywhere near the school was impossibly expensive, and anything in the price range was like, twenty miles from the school.

He furrows his brows, his eyes beginning hurt from the constant staring at a screen. "Ugh!" he groans as he pushed the mouse away from him. "This is impossible!" he complains, his mind set on giving up the search for a momentary break. He carded his fingers through his blond hair, pushing it back from his face. "Tch, stingy uncle..." he grumbles, though a twist of regret in his gut showed him his immediate remorse, and he hoped that no one was near enough to catch wind of that little insult.

He clicks his tongue a few times as he closes a few tabs, and opens a new one. He opens the search browser and clicks on the search bar. He types in the phrase; _"cheap apartments in Trost district"_. The Trost district is at least ten miles from the school, even further from where he currently lives, but he felt like searching there might be good. He always liked the museums they have there. He hits the _'ENTER'_ key and waits for the page to load. Once it does so, he scrolls down a few times. He clicks on a link that intrigues him and he's sent to another web page. He finds a few nice-ish apartments for a fairly reasonable price. Okay, now he just has to find the one nearest to school for the cheapest price.

Okay, that took longer than expected. After approximately three hours of searching, Levi finds an apartment fifteen miles from the school at a moderate size, for a good price of seventy dollars per month. He feels dimly proud of his discovery, though it shouldn't that darn difficult to find an apartment! He bookmarked the tab for further inspection. He thought it'd be best to confirm with his uncle before buying it, though he left the responsibility up to Levi.

Just at that moment, a brunette with curly hair cut finely to her chin, Bara Tetsu, (which was what he now called her in his head,) steps through the open door of his bedroom. "Levi, the king has requested your presence," she states formally. "Yeah, thanks. I was headed there anyway," Levi mumbles as he stands from his chair. Bara begins to walk back out the door, leaving Levi behind. When she realizes he isn't following, she turns back around, seeing that Levi is still in his bedroom.

Levi stopped to stretch, the amount of time he spent on the computer with his back hunched and arms locked tightening all his muscles. He stretches his arms above his head and moves his body side to side, stretching mostly his spine and shoulders.

Because Levi had decided to stop dressing in such a straight-laced, buttoned-down style, he was now wearing a tank-top. Now, there would normally be no problem with this, and there isn't _necessarily_ a _problem_ , so to say... But, Bara just happened to be looking at him in that moment. And, with the openness of the shirt, she could see all the flexing muscles of the deceivingly skinny man.

Her face turns a dull shade of red as she spins her body around once again to face the hallway. "Levi Sa?" she calls over her shoulder, calling his attention as he flexes his fingers and cracks his knuckles. "Yeah?" he asks, now trying to loosen his neck muscles. "The king..." she starts but fades off slightly to have Levi finish for her. "Oh, right. He wanted me to see him. I'll do that." Bara smiles slightly. "Okay, come along then." Levi holds up a finger, saying; "Kay, just a sec," as he looks around at the floor, bed, and desk, searching for something.

He finds it and picks it up. A black blazer. He quickly and rushedly pulls it over his arms as he runs out the doorway to catch up with Bara. He fastens a single button so that it closes over his tank-top. Sure, he wouldn't have to dress nearly as formal as usual, as he'd be going to school soon and if he wore button up dress shirts every day people might look at him weird, but something about his uncle Kenny struck fear within him even when it was completely unnecessary. So, he felt the best idea would be to look somewhat okay, at least with the jacket on his uncle wouldn't see his tank-top, as he'd probably be annoyed at that.

Levi's chest tightens up as they reach the end of the long hall leading to the king's study, the room he always huddles away to during the long days and nights when he's "working". Bara turns and looks at him. "Well...? Go on. He's waiting for you, after all," she says, nodding her head in the direction of the door. Levi feels a cold sweat forming all over his body as he unconsciously nods. "Y-yeah... Right..." he mumbles, reluctantly walking forward, and pushing open the heavy doors, the ear-piercing creak rings through his head and annoys him to no end.

The king is pacing through the centre of the ever-dark study, not even looking in his nephew's direction. "K-Kenny, s-sir," Levi stumbles with his words as his tongue feels knotted in fear and his chest heaves in short breaths. His uncle's eyes dart up to him momentarily, before he looks over at a document sitting on his large desk having finally stopped pacing.

He looks back over to his disciple who currently stood, awkward and confused, in the middle of the room. "Have you found a place to live yet...?" he questions harshly, his tone cold as always. Levi gives him a quick nod. "Y-yes. I've found a place that-" The king interrupts him with; "Is it below your required budget?" Levi bites back a rude retort and swallows a lump in his throat before responding through gritted teeth as to contain his anger; "Yes, it's seventy dollars a month. And it is within reasonable walking distance to the-" The king once again interrupts him mid-sentence. "I don't care how close it is to the school, that is for _you_ to worry about. _I_ , on the other hand, have to worry about paying for your school tuition, and rent."

Levi swallows dryly, his throat suddenly feeling as though it's closing around all the words he wanted to make known. Levi opens his mouth to say something but his uncle speaks before him. "I see you've already taken the measures to conceal your identity. And, I managed to finish any and all paperwork for the school. You should be there by Monday." Levi nods, though he feels slightly disappointed for it being a Thursday. But, that's not a very long wait. He's already waited twelve years, he could wait five more days.

"But," the king continues. "You said you would use a pseudonym." Levi stares at him in confusion for a moment, scrunching up his nose. "Well?" the king pries, still leaving Levi lost as to what he wanted from him. "What is it?" Levi suddenly snapped back into his right mind, saying; "O-oh, right right, sorry." The king gives him a look that only _mildly_ suggests he tell him, but just a simple look sends shockwaves of fear and horror reverberating down his spine and contorting his face into an uncomfortable cringe.

"Rivai. Rivai Akkaman."

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 **daddy .-. aries for following.**

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	5. A walk down easy street

**[AU] Hello my friends! Back with another quick update! So, from here on we'll start meeting way more characters. The bulk of the character introductions will come up a few chapters from now. But, so far I like what's happened. Please tell me what you think with a review, I love reading about what you think! And thank you for reading, please enjoy!**

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Levi furrows his brows as his eyes quickly scan across his room. "Where is it?" he groans with a sigh. he pads across the room, his bare feet bouncing softly across the plush carpet. "Ah, there it is," he mumbles, finally finding the sweatshirt he was looking for draped across his desk and is finally able to clothe his uncovered upper body. "Levi!" Bara calls from down the hall as he pulls the sweatshirt over his head. "Yeah?" he calls back. "It's time to go, are you ready?" she questions, no longer yelling down the hall, and now standing in the open doorframe of his bedroom. Levi gives her a single nod. "Yeah. Ready."

He felt a twist of nervousness in his gut but ignores it as he slings a bag over his shoulder. He follows Bara out his bedroom door and walks with her to the front of the house. Bara turns and gives him a light smile, saying; "Well, I bid you adieu, Sa. I'll see you sometimes?" A slight smile tugs at Levi's lips as he responds with; "Don't worry, I'll be visiting regularly." Bara giggles just slightly as she walks toward the door, pushing it open for him. He once again feels the twisting of his stomach, like it's being tied in knots, as he walks out the door. He thanks Bara and gives her a slight wave. He feels the cold hit him like a brick wall, and he's clearly not dressed heavily enough, albeit there is a very evident smile on his cold-flushed face.

On the other hand, Kenny sat in his study, a very disgruntled look on his face as he studied closely a document in hand. His lips turn downward in a grimace as his brows furrow deeply. " **TETSU** ," he calls, beckoning the brunette. She quickly scurries down the long hall after having seen Levi out, and takes her place in front of the king with her head bowed as a sign of respect just as quickly as she can. After giving the document another look over, Kenny turns it around in his hand, now showing it to the practically trembling servant.

"Do you know what _this_ is?" he asks, annoyance and frustration settling heavily in his voice. "N-no, m-my lord," the obviously scared brunette stutters. "It is a _**COMPLAINT**_ ," he yells, pushing the paper forward. "A-a-about... Wha-what...?" The king grimaces as he stares at her as if _she_ was the one who sent the complaint. "You ask me as if _I_ know. **Find out** ," he spat, thrusting the paper into her chest. She backs away as he walks to his desk, not really knowing why to stay. She quickly backpedals, until she's left the room, from there she just runs down the hall until she's at the living area, finally feeling safe from that monstrosity.

Levi lets out a shaky breath and watches the small white cloud disappear. "Too cold..." he complains under his breath, walking quickly to get to his destination, which is still about an hour away. He turns a corner and crosses the street. He stuffs his hands deep into his sweater pockets, striding quickly across the sidewalk as to keep his body temperature up. Suddenly, he heard something that sounded as though someone had called out to him. He turned his head around, brows furrowing and nose crinkling in confusion.

"Hey," a strangely familiar man repeats, walking down a driveway of a nearby house, of which Levi assumes they live in, to stand by him. "... Hi...?" Levi whispers back, confusion still evident. "I haven't seen you around here before." The man clarifies, slinging a backpack over his shoulder. Levi nods. "Yeah, because I've never been here before. I live a fairly good ways away."

"Ah, where are you from?" Levi thinks for a moment of what exactly he should say. "I live over in the Rose district." The light brown-haired man raises his brows in surprise. "Really? I hear that place is great, with really nice, huge houses. I pass by there sometimes when I'm walking with my friends, the houses are seriously nice... And huge." Levi internally rolls his eyes. After living with them, the houses don't seem _that_ big... "Yeah... I mean... It depends on whether or not that's a good thing..." The taller man shrugs as he walks past Levi.

Levi turns and thinks for a moment as he watches the other man walk away. He contemplates his next action for a while. He silently nods to himself when he's made up his mind and takes up a light jog to catch up. "So, what brings you to Shiganshina, and why? Especially seeing as you don't live near, and you're commuting on foot no less." Levi's mind didn't even catch wind of the question, as his mind reeled in thought at the confusion of being able to recognize this strange man. When he didn't receive an answer, the taller man turns his head to look at the shorter man nearby. "What brings you here?" He asks again.

Levi finally gets pulled out of his trance-like fixation upon finding this man's identity in the depths of his mind to answer his question. "O-oh..." He mumbles. He leans his head back, looking up at the sky, as he thinks about what to say for a moment. "... Lot's of reasons..." he mumbles with a sigh. The man nods as he turns a corner, Levi having to turn the same corner. "So, where are you headed?" Levi was glad that the man didn't pry for a further answer, after all, that would be rather rude. "Sheena district," Levi responds curtly. "Ah," the man starts. "That's a ways that way," he instructs, pointing to where he's referring. "I don't actually know how to get there..." Levi mumbles. "Oh," the man starts. "I can show you there."

Levi smiles slightly and looks up at him. "That'd be great thanks." The man nods with a smile as they continue on. Suddenly, he stops abruptly and says; "Oh I almost forgot!" Levi flinches at the sudden outburst, asking hesitantly; "Forgot... What...?" The man smiles just slightly. "Oluo. Oluo Bozado." He offers his hand to Levi. Levi hesitates a moment, his hand faltering as it began to move forward just slightly. He finally grabbed the man now identified as Oluo's hand.

"R-R... Rivai... Akkaman."


	6. Humble abode

**[AN] Sorry, this one's short. But, I promise the next one will be longer. Promise. :) Thank you for reading, and please leave a review!**

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Oluo walked Levi all the way to his new apartment, or rather, his street. Levi was very grateful for that, for he thought he probably wouldn't have found his new home in nearly the time he did. He shakes Oluo's hand as he stands just at the edge of the street. "Really, thanks again," as he repeats his gratitude, Oluo simply nods and smiles. "Yes, of course, no problem. I'm always ready to help someone if they need it." Levi smiles back at him and extends his hand, gesturing for a handshake. Oluo excepts the offered gesture, giving his hand a firm squeeze.

Oluo looks up to the sky to see the sun much higher than he had anticipated. He turned to Levi, and asks frivolously; "What time is it?" Levi looks down at his wrist watch. "... Seven forty." Oluo's expression turns worried and rushed. "Aw, crap! I'm gonna be late!" Levi looks up at him through his thick lashes, sending him a glare. Oluo quickly covers his mouth with his hands, realizing why. "Sorry," he peeps. Levi sighs and rolls his eyes.

"Well, you'd better get out of here then!" Levi orders. Oluo nods. "Yeah, maybe I'll see ya around, Rivai." Levi nods slightly. "I guess... Seeya Oluo..." He quickly runs down the sidewalk, already late to the start of the first period at his high school. Levi sighs as he turned to walk in the opposite direction, looking for the apartment at the address _1252_. He found it rather quickly, as it had a huge moving truck on it with his families emblem on it. He cringes and hides his face, thinking; _"Discrete, real fricking discrete."_

He walks up to the truck and sees that there are a few men unloading boxes and dumping them in front of the building. Apparently, he made it there just as they were unloading the last of the boxes, as they left shortly after. Luckily, no one was out and about at 8 AM, but he was still slightly worried that someone might've seen that really conspicuous truck leave. Nevertheless, he rolls his eyes and sighs, as he heaves up a stack of boxes into his arms. He carries them inside, and up the stairs. He barely has any boxes, like three. So, he doesn't see why they needed to bring an _entire_ truck and a few men, for a couple measly boxes.

He finally makes it to the top of the stairs. He's looking for room _b34_. When he comes across it, he uses the key the guy in the lobby gave him, and sticks it in the lock. He turns it and pulls open the door. He grimaces at the utter disarray the room is in. He walks in and slams the door behind him. He drops the boxes directly in front of him as he glances around. "Oh well," he mutters, seeing the clutter. "It'll give me something to do."

He rolls up his sleeves and moves around adjusting all the furniture, polishing lamp shades, cleaning windows, dusting headboards, doing everything really. He sighs with his hands on his hips, feeling thoroughly satisfied with the good cleaning he got out. He was sure he'd been doing it for a few hours, he just wasn't sure exactly how long. Finally, he realized something. "It's tiny..." he mumbles.

"I love it."

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 **I'd like to thank**

 **VermillionFlowers for the review.**


	7. Morning shenanigans

**[AN] Hello! Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoy! Please review, follow, and favorite. I'd love that so much! :)**

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Levi sighs in content as he looks at the organized room he would now call home. After he did the intensive cleaning, he organized all his possessions neatly and orderly on the small shelves and tables. After realizing that the movers had in fact brought his queen-size bed, he ditched the old, presumably bug-filled one to the that he made his bed up to impeccable quality, and was now sitting on it.

His legs swing slightly as he looks out the open window to his right. He smiles softly as thoughts swirl in his mind. His eyes close without him realizing it. Thoughts of finally being free. Thoughts of happiness. His thoughts are abruptly cut off by a loud noise from outside the window. His eyes snap open in surprise, as he sees a figure running down the fire escape. He rushedly jumps up from the bed and runs over to the window. He hops out of it, landing roughly on the metal fire escape, and grips the cold iron rails to keep balanced. He grimaces as he can't catch sight of the face, but can see other details.

Brown hair cut to jaw length, a cream sweater, blue jeans, a black backpack slung loosely over their shoulder, and black Nike's. He was actually surprised that he could make out this much detail, but he always had good vision. He decides he'll go back inside, as the cold was slowly becoming a nuisance. He gets another look at them, no doubt going to high school, and late for it, as they rush down the sidewalk.

He climbs back into the room through the window and walks over to the floor mirror. He looks at himself in the mirror again, his own appearance still baffling himself. He runs a hand through his artificial blond hair and brushes it back from his face. He looks at his hand as he brings it down, making a look of disgust. "It bleeds everywhere," he grumbles, referring to the hair dye that gets on literally everything the first few days.

"Ugh," he groans, walking into the bathroom to clean his hands. _'It's a Friday...'_ he thinks to himself. _'Just three more days...'_ He thinks of what he could do to entertain himself because he's always had trouble with that. He rarely finds anything entertaining. This was going to be fun.

He decides he'll try his luck outside, and uses the fire escape to get to the bottom. It's there, may as well us it. He also kind of did it to avoid some annoying dude named Djel, who worked in the lobby, with a stupid haircut. But besides appearance, the guy didn't really seem like he cared about his job. Oh well, he wouldn't have to see him if he climbed the fire escape every day.

He walks down the sidewalk, periodically glancing up from the ground to look at the houses and apartments littering the street's edge. The houses aren't nearly as good as the one's in the Rose district, nor is the neighborhood as big, but that's a good thing. He realized that his apartment is not in the Trost district, it's in Shiganshina. Which, is very close to the Trost district.

He finds a nice little river where he chooses to stay for a while. Just standing near it seems to have a calming effect on him. He watches little ducks waddle toward the river, it appears to be a mother, as it has three other, smaller ducks following it. One falls behind slightly, before catching up again with the rest. Levi chuckles softly, whispering; "Yes, stay close to your family... Don't lose them... They're all you have..." His happy demeanor suddenly turns somber, as he remembers his own problems with his family, and that he didn't stay close to them, and has lost them.

He physical shakes his head to try and rid of those plaguing thoughts as he turns himself around and lands on the sidewalk again. His shoes are now slightly damp as he walks again back to his apartment. His artificially blond hair falls in front of his face as he stares down at the ground, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his sweater.

It was much warmer now, but Levi still found himself shivering at the cold. The sun makes his skin feel warm, but the wind makes his body feel cold. This is a very indecisive morning. He groans in annoyance as he rubs his arms, creating a little friction which results in minimal warmth. His grimace disappears just slight as he comes across apartment 1252. Instead of going through the front door, like a normal person, and having to deal with Djel, he goes up the fire escape. He quickly runs up it, for just under a minute, and jumps into the window he's _sure_ leads to room b34.

He groans in annoyance as the apartment feels just as cold as outside. It doesn't help that his window has been open this entire time, though... "Why's it have to be so dang cold!" he yells, slamming the window closed in a violent manner. He sighs as he lets his body fall onto the bed, and sprawls his arms out. "Well, I'm already bored," he announces to no one. He sits up abruptly. "Screw this," he says, jumping up. "I'm watching tv."

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"Augh, there's nothing to watch," Levi groans loudly, throwing his head back as he continues to flip through channels. He sunk deeper into the couch cushion as his head furrowed down. "Forget it, I'll watch the news..." he says with an eye roll as he switches it to _channel 7_ , and tosses the remote to the side. He grimaces as a news report comes on about another scandal involving some guy who keeps stealing a bunch of money through a multitude of ways. "Tch," he *sibilates. "Don't people learn? Crime never pays..." He thinks for a moment, before adding; "Well... I guess in this case it does... But... Not when they get caught."

He grabs the remote he earlier tossed aside and switches off the tv. "Watching the news gets me depressed," _'As if I'm not already,'_ he thinks with a pause in his speech. "I'll do something else... For now..." He hopped up from the sofa and walked, once again, to the window. "Screw Djel, I'm takin the fire escape," he mumbled as he jumped out the window to land roughly on the metal landing of the fire escape. He runs quickly and nimbly down the stairs, gripping the cold iron bars for safety.

Levi walked down the sidewalk, looking around for something to do, anything to do. Suddenly, he remembered something. "Did we pass a gym on the way here?" He reversed himself and took up a light jog in the opposite direction, headed for said gym. He turns a quick corner and comes across the Shiganshina gym. He pushes the doors open and stepped in. It's a public gym, so it isn't as good as something you'd have to have a membership for, but Levi has no money.

It's pretty empty. Well... It _is_ 9 am on a Friday... Levi shrugs at his own internal question of what to do first and walks over to the treadmill. "Start slow," he mumbles, jumping on it. "Now... How's this thing work?" he asks himself. "Uh... This?" He presses a round button that says _go_. Nothing happens. "Oh _come on_! If it's going to say _go_ , then it'd better go!" he yells, slamming a fist against it. His fist hits a button labeled _10_. " _Go, go, go, go, go!_ " he yells, smashing the _go_ button every time he yells the word. Suddenly, the treadmill boots up and starts moving.

"Ah, finally. There we _go_." As Levi gets up to a comfortable pace of just faster than a jog, the treadmill continues to pick up speed. "Okay... I-it's getting a little-" he gets cut off by a sudden spike in speed, and almost falls on his face. " **IT'S GETTING A LITTLE FAST**!" he yells, barely able to keep up with the pace. When he's practically at a sprint and he can hardly catch his breath, he caves.

He reaches out to try and turn it off, not really knowing exactly how. He tries hitting the _go_ button again, because regardless of what it says, you usually hit the same button to turn something on and off. Apparently not this, because nothing happens. Through wheezes, Levi shouts; " **COME ON YOU STUPID THING**! **I'M GOING TO HAVE A FRICKING HEART ATTACK OVER HERE**!" Finally, he grips onto the handles on the side of the treadmill to attempt at getting some kind of leverage. It works, because he finally gets the bright idea to just lift himself up, so that his feet are no longer touching the treadmill.

He furrows his brows and sighs, as he carefully places his feet on the _edge_ of the treadmill so that he can use his hands to press the little _stop_ button near the back of the control panel. When the treadmill has almost stopped moving, Levi puts his feet on it. He doesn't even bother doing anything, he just moves back with the treadmill until he falls painfully onto his back.

"Ah-! Sugar-honey-iced-tea-!" Levi yells quickly as he hits the ground. "Mother of god... That's gonna heart in the _morning_ ," he says, his words straining as he sits up. "Ugh," he groans as he stands. "That was a stupid idea. All this was a stupid idea. I'm stupid. This stupid treadmill is stupid! This stupid sweater is stupid for being stupid!" After his little outburst, he growls, and glares at the treadmill like it made a conscious decision to hurt him, and like it was an animate object. Wow, he really _is_ stupid... "Fricking machine!" He yelled, kicking the side of it.

His head reared back and his eyes widened as he hissed in a breath. " **AH, GOD! SON OF- MOTHER OF- LITTLE- FUUUUUU- GRAH!"** He yelled incoherently in anger before throwing his hands up in exasperation. "WHY." After finally being satisfied with all his angered yelling, he turns to the door, still grumbling slightly in anger. He pushes open the doors forcefully and limps out, the cold managing to lower his body temperature.

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 **I'd like to thank**

 **VermillionFlowers** **for the follow and review.**

 ***sibilates, sibilate. Utter with a hissing sound.**


End file.
